Camping, Take Two

We returned on Sunday from our second camping trip of the summer. I have to say that camping with a two year old this year was much easier than last. Maybe it's because Clara has mostly refrained from eating dirt. Or it could be that she's a better sleeper (less likely to freak out if woken up at night in a strange place). Or maybe it was her increased awareness/excitement about every camping-ish activity. Whatever the reason, this year felt pretty easy. I anticipate it will get harder again next year.

We spent three nights at Beaver Creek campground at Priest Lake. When I made the reservations, I thought I was booking at a campground on the other side of the lake. Oops. It ended up being a beautiful, serene spot, though. Everything was fabulous (shady site, proximity to lake, etc.)) minus the outhouse situation. We haven't outhouse-camped in a while. It's not my favorite thing in the world (but I doubt it is for anyone else either).

We had a great time with the Pickering, Rockwell & Gutman families (nine kids, nine adults, one dog). We enjoyed lots of beach time, good food, a few nice hikes/walks, and lots of relaxation. It was camping at its finest, really.

On the way up we had a nice twenty minute pit stop outside the Newport McDonald while Clara used her potty chair. The goal was to arrive before dark and we missed it by about two hours. If we compiled a list of all the random spots the Claranator has used the John, it would be a long and interesting list, let me tell you.

Here's the crew: girls (me, Steph, Carly, Shelley, Janna & Meredith)

The guys (Neal, Chris, Jesse, Dan & Jono)

And the kids (Abby, Micah, Jake, Andrew, Levi, Clara, Quinn & Benj)

And here's what we did. Enjoy food...

Watch the kiddos play...

Hold snakes (yikes)...

Soak up some sunshine on the beach...

Hike to upper Priest Lake (and Lake View Trail, for Jono & Neal)...

Take a kayak ride at dusk...

And spend time around the campfire (with glow sticks, of course)...

It was a lovely time in so many ways. Now if summer will just hang on for a few more weeks. I'm not ready to say goodbye just yet!